Increase in building permits seen as boost for Solano County communities

A bump in building permits doesn't necessarily signify new growth, but it could mean that fewer people are relocating and, thus, continuing to support their communities.

So said Gale Spears, communications director for the city of Fairfield, on Wednesday afternoon.

It seems the city's increase in issued building permits has led its minimally staffed Building Division to consolidate its inspections to Monday through Thursday. The move is said to maximize staff and provide increased customer service.

"We have been trying to stretch our reduced staff to continue scheduling inspections Mondays through Fridays, but found that it just wasn't working well," said Erin Beavers, community development director, in a prepared statement. "Our building inspectors will assume a Monday through Thursday, nine-hour-a-day work schedule starting on Oct. 1."

Starting Oct. 5, limited Friday building inspections will be available only if scheduled in person at the Building Division business counter by noon the Thursday before. Friday inspections will be scheduled on a first-come, first-served basis, officials said, will not be made for a specific time and will cost an additional $60, payable at the time of scheduling.

Subdivision developers will be charged a minimum of $120 for two hours of inspection time and $60 per hour thereafter. The phone-in process for scheduling Monday-through-Thursday inspections remains the same.

Spears explained that permit issuance can run the gamut from remodels to new construction. Almost any work, she explained, can trigger the need for a permit. When the related work is done, an inspector is often needed to take a look at the finished project and sign off on it before going any further. As there are only one or two projects coming up right now in Fairfield, she surmised that perhaps more remodels are being done. That, she pointed out, is a good thing.

"I think the greatest part of this is that people are staying, investing and making improvements in their homes, thus investing in our community," she said.

In Vacaville, the city's three building inspectors are also busy. Along with checking out work related to improvements and such, they're also kept on their toes with housing projects going on in areas like North Village and Quinn Road.

"In terms of permit activity and project approval, things look really optimistic," noted Maureen Carson, the city's community development director. "North Village 5 was just approved by the City Council, the developer's ready to begin construction. So there's some good signs there of (economic) recovery."

Should more permit requests be granted and an influx of inspections needed, Carson said her team would address them as best they can as they happen.

"Wouldn't we all love to see the economy rebound so much?" she asked.

No changes have been made to Vacaville's inspection schedules, which run throughout the week except "Furlough Fridays," which are the first and third Friday of every month.